Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP14900
Authors: John Barrios; Efraim Benmelech; Yael Hochberg; Paola Sapienza; Luigi Zingales
Abstract: The success of non-pharmaceutical interventions to contain pandemics often depends greatly upon voluntary compliance with government guidelines. What explains variation in voluntary compliance? Using mobile phone and survey data, we show that during the early phases of COVID-19, voluntary social distancing was higher when individuals exhibit a higher sense of civic duty. This is true for U.S. individuals, U.S. counties, and European regions. We also show that after U.S. states began re-opening, social distancing remained more prevalent in high civic capital counties. Our evidence points to the importance of civic capital in designing public policy responses to pandemics.
Keywords: COVID; Civic Capital; Voluntary Compliance
JEL Codes: Z1; K42; P16
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| higher civic capital (Z13) | greater voluntary compliance with social distancing measures (D16) |
| higher civic capital (Z13) | lower mobility around non-essential businesses (J62) |
| higher civic capital (Z13) | higher mobility at home (J62) |
| civic capital (H54) | adherence to social distancing guidelines (I14) |
| civic capital (H54) | decreases in mobility data near retail and recreation venues (R23) |